Hinge with integral check and hold-open



June 17, 1858 W. F. KAPANKA HINGE WITH INTEGRAL CHECK AND HOLD-OPEN Filed Nov. 16, 1953 all INVENTOR Zflz/azrz Z/i gawz/fa BY W v AT TOBN EY 2,838,785 C Patented June 17, 1958 HINGE WITH INTEGRAL CHECK AND HOLD-OPEN 8 William F. Kapanka, Royal flak, Mich, assignor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Application November 16, 1953, Serial No. 392,358 8 Claims. (Cl. 16-138) My invention relates to hinges, such as automobile door hinges, and is particularly devoted to the provision, in a single compact practical easily installed assembly, of a door hinge, a door check, and a door hold-open.

As is understood by those skilled in the art, automobile doors" are ordinarily provided with checks to limit the opening movement and with hold-opens to hold the door in open position.

These mechanisms may be separate, with attendant difficulties of installation. According to my invention, they are combined into a single assembly requiring little more room than an ordinary hinge and just as simple to install as a mere hinge.

Moreover, the structure, while light and compact, is strong and durable.

The advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description of the preferred embodiment of the invention and the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a horizontal sectional view of a door hinge in closed position;

Fig. 2 is a similar view in open position;

' Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the plane indicated in Fig. l; and

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional View taken on the plane indicated in Fig. 1.

The hinge of the invention provides a means for mounting a door, such as an automobile door having an outer panel 11 and a hinge face 12 on a body pillar 13. The hinge per se comprises a male strap 14 fixed to the door by screws 16 entering a plate 17 behind the face 12; a female strap 18 similarly mounted on the body pillar by screws 19; and a hinge pin 21. Pin 21 extends through arms 22 of strap 18 and arm 23 of strap 14, bushings 24 being mounted in arm 23. The pin is knurled at 26 for retention. This hinge operates in the obvious manner to allow the door to swing between the positions indicated in Figs. 1 and 2.

The door check portion of the device comprises two parallel toggle linkages straightened as the door opens, each linkage comprising links 31 pivoted on pins 32 driven into holes in the arms of the female strap 18 and links 33 pivoted on pins 34 driven into holes in lugs 36 extending from the face of male strap 14.

The joint of both linkages is constituted by a shouldered pin 37 extending through all the links and staked at the ends for retention.

A cross pin 38 with reduced ends extends between the links 31 approximately at their midpoints. As the toggle linkage approaches a straight angle, hooked extensions 39 on the links 33 engage the cross pin (Fig. 2) to provide a limiting position of hinge opening and thus a door check.

A restraint against closing movement of the door when it is fully open (the hold-open function) is provided by engagement of a curved leaf spring 41, secured to the strap 14 by a pair of screws 42, with the cross pin 38.

When the door is closed, as in Fig. 1, this leaf spring lies against the knee pin 37 of the toggle linkage. As the door swings clockwise from the position of Fig. 1 toward the open position of Fig. 2, the spring 41 slides slightly on the pin 37 and, as the toggle begins to approach the substantially straight line limiting position of Fig. 2, the curved end of spring 41 engages the cross pin 38. The engagement of the spring with the pin tends to deflect the spring slightly to the left as shown in Fig. 2. The end of the spring thus acts against the pin 38, tending to straighten the toggle. Slightly before the toggle reaches its limiting position, the spring 41 springs back somewhat, snapping the curved end thereof under the pin 38 as shown in Fig. 2 and exerting a straightening force on the toggle. The action between the spring 41 and the pin 38 is that of an impositive detent and, with the door in the.

fully open position, the spring is loaded to some extent as a column rather than as a leaf. Because of the force multiplication of the toggle, a small spring force on the 'pinexerts a relatively large force to hold the door open and counterbalance the weight of the door. When force is exerted to close the door, the toggle breaks and pin 38 snaps under the curved end of the spring 41 to free the door for closing movement.

The entire assembly may be readily fabricated and is installed as easily as a simple hinge, and in small space. The advantages of the invention will be manifest to those skilled in the art, and may be attained in whole or in part by many modified structures which may be devised by the exercise of skill in the art within the compass of the invention.

I claim:

1. A hinge comprising a male strap, a female strap clevised to receive the male strap, a hinge pin connecting the straps, two parallel sets of toggle links, each set comprising two links each pivotally connected to one of the straps, the sets being spaced from each other in the direction of the hinge pin axis, a common link pin pivotally connecting the links of both sets, a cross pin extending between the links of two sets pivotally connected to the female strap, an abutment on each of the other two links adapted to engage the cross pin to prevent straightening of the toggle links, and a leaf spring mounted on the male strap and adapted to extend through the female strap to engage the cross pin as the hinge opens, the engagement biasing the toggle into its open position.

2. A hinge and hold-open comprising, a pair of pivotally interconnected hinge straps, a toggle linkage inter connecting said hinge straps and being movable between generally folded and extended positions as said hinge straps move relative to each other, an abutment on said toggle linkage, and a resilient member secured to one of said hinge straps and engageable with said abutment as said toggle linkage approaches an extended position to exert a resilient detaining force on said abutment tending to bias said toggle linkage toward said position.

3. A hinge and hold-open comprising, a pair of pivotally interconnected hinge straps, a toggle linkage interconnecting said hinge straps and being movable between generally folded and extended positions as said hinge straps move relative to each other, an abutment on said toggle linkage, and a resilient compressible member secured to one of said hinge straps and engageable with said abutment as said toggle linkage approaches an extended position to thereby compress said member whereby said member exerts a resilient force on said abutment tending to bias said toggle linkage toward said position.

4. A hinge, check, and hold-open comprising, a pair of pivotally interconnected hinge straps, a toggle linkage including a pair of pivotally interconnected links coupled to each of said hinge straps for movement between generally folded and extended positions as said straps move relative to each other, means on one of said toggle links engageable by the other of said links as said toggle linkage moves to an extended position to limit extension of said toggle linkage and provide a check, and a resilient detent member on one of said hinge straps engageable with said means on said one of said toggle links as said toggle links approach an extended position to exert a resilient force on said toggle linkage tending to bias said linkagetoward said extended position.

5. A hinge and hold-open comprising, a pair of pivotally interconnected hinge straps, a toggle linkage interconnecting said hinge straps and including a pair of toggle links, said links being movable between generally folded and extended positions as said hinge straps move relative to each other, a fixed abutment on one of said toggle links, and a leaf spring mounted on one of said hinge straps and engageable with said abutment as said links approach an extended position to thereby exert a resilient force on said abutment tending to bias said toggle linkage toward said extended position.

6. A hinge and hold-open comprising, a pair of piv otally interconnected hinge straps, a first link secured to one of said hinge straps, a second link secured to the other of said hinge straps, means pivotally interconnecting said links whereby said links are movable between generally folded and extended positions with respect to each other as said hinge straps move relative to each other, an abutment on said first link, and a resilient member secured to said other of said hinge straps and engageable with said abutment as said links approach an extended position to exert a resilient detaining force on said abutment tending to bias said links toward said extended position with respect to each other.

7. A hinge and hold-open comprising, a pair of pivotally interconnected hinge straps, a first pair of spaced links pivotally secured to one of said straps, a second pair of spaced links pivotally secured to the other of said straps, means pivotally interconnecting said pairs of links whereby said links are movable between generally folded and extended positions as said hinge straps move relative to each other, an abutment extending between one of said pairs of links, and a resilient defiectable member secured to one of said hinge straps and engageable with said abutment as said links approach an extended position to thereby exert a resilient detaining force on said abutment tending to bias said links toward an extended position with respect to each other.

8. A hinge and hold-open comprising, a pair of pivotally interconnected hinge straps, a toggle linkage interconnecting said hinge straps and being movable between generally folded and extended positions as said hinge straps move relative to each other, an abutment on said toggle linkage, and a resilient deflectable and compressible member secured to one of said hinge straps and initially Wipingly engageable with said abutment immediately prior to extensionof said toggle links and thereafter movable into compressive engagement with said abutment to exert a resilient detaining force on said abutment tending to bias said toggle linkage toward an extended position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

